Socialized Medicine

For whatever combination of reasons, we in the United States appear to be deaf when it comes to hearing the phrase “re-inventing the wheel.” For, you see, Europe has done much if not all the things that Demorats wish to do domestically, yet the Demorats insist on in fact “re-inventing” said wheel.

Case in point: the British. Medicine is quite socialized there, via the NHS (National Health Service). It obviously works well: check out any average pair of British chompers.

Patients who refuse to change their unhealthy lifestyles should not be treated by the NHS, the Conservatives said today.

In a bid to ease spiralling levels of obesity and other health concerns, a Tory panel said certain treatments should be denied to patients who refuse to co-operate with health professionals and live healthier lifestyles.

I have a few questions:
  • Who determines how a “healthier lifestyle” is lived?
  • How is it determined that an individual’s lifestyle is invalid?
  • Who determines, specifically, the parameters of a “healthier lifestyle”?
  • Will the change to a “healthier lifestyle” mandate a job change?
  • Or will employers, public and private, be forced to cut work hours, remove stress, clean their environment, remove all imperfections on every level, disallow adversity, eliminate time and budget constraints, provide for on-the-job (paid) naps, exercise, meditative periods?
  • Can all these employers, public and private, then be sued when they do not provide an immediate perfect environment for the health of all their employees?
  • After all, an imperfect lifestyle can likely be traced to stress on the job;

Primary answer: The Government. It shall decide.

Do what I call The Logical Extension.

Do you not see much “writing on the wall” here?
BZ

P.S.
That’s a British cartoon, by the way.

The Path to 9/11

The Path to 9/11, an ABC movie released not long ago (aired roughly 1 year ago) which received 7 Emmy nominations (director of photography, special effects, editing, etc.), is being held up for DVD release by Disney — who said, essentially, that if Hillary were not running for President, this would not be an issue.
Are you kidding me?

The Clintons essentially said that the producers of the series “made it all up.” Bob Eiger, CEO of Disney, received a call from Bill Clinton personally last year, to either pull the thing entirely or re-cut it.

Want to buy it at Amazon? You could have purchased it a bit ago; now it is “currently unavailable.” See the photo. Timing is everything.

With no date for the release, questions are being raised about whether political pressure is behind its current status as a stalled or discarded DVD project. The reasons are murky, but the miniseries’ writer, Cyrus Nowrasteh, believes it’s crystal clear: Powerful forces are out to protect Bill Clinton’s presidential legacy and shield Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) from any potential collateral damage in her bid for the White House.

Nowrasteh, also one of the miniseries’ many producers, said he was told by a top executive at ABC Studios that “if Hillary weren’t running for president, this wouldn’t be a problem.”

Many others, by the way, are running to fill this vacuum and I suspect that, with sufficient time, the DVD will be issued. Or perhaps not.

I will tell you this: if/when it is released, I shall buy TWO copies. I would ask that my readers do precisely the same.

You want logic, facts and common sense in the media or Hollywood? Then place your CASH where your thoughts are.
BZ

One Smart Cookie

Never let it be said Fred D. Thompson isn’t smart.

He’s got his presidential candidacy’s announcement planned to a gnat’s eyelash:

The former Tennessee senator plans to announce his official entry into the Republican presidential contest on Thursday. But he’ll pique interest first on Wednesday with an ad aired during a GOP presidential debate from New Hampshire that Thompson will otherwise skip. By then he will have taped an appearance on NBC’s “The Tonight Show With Jay Leno,” which will air about an hour after the debate ends in many U.S. households. Come midnight, he’ll post a 15-minute video announcement on his official Web site.

The face time with Leno and the debate ad on the Fox network are the coquettish moves of a candidate who has already proven his aptitude using the media, from television to the Internet. While his main rivals – Rudy Giuliani, Mitt Romney and John McCain – parry debate questions, Thompson will pretty much control his own message.

The slo-mo ol’ country boy may just teach all the techie-candidates a thing or three.

BZ

Pushing

Iran continues to push:

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) – Iran’s president claimed Sunday that his country is now running 3,000 centrifuges to enrich uranium for its nuclear program—a long-sought Iranian goal that could add momentum to efforts to impose new U.N. sanctions on the Islamic Republic.

The claim appeared at odds with a report by the U.N. nuclear watchdog on Thursday that put the number much lower—at close to 2,000. The International Atomic Energy Agency said enrichment had slowed and Iran was cooperating with its nuclear probe, which could fend off calls for a third round of sanctions.

“The West thought the Iranian nation would give in after just a resolution, but now we have taken another step in the nuclear progress and launched more than 3,000 centrifuge machines, installing a new cascade every week,” President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said in remarks carried by the state television Web site.

Trust me on this one: if Iran acquires or builds nukes, Iran will use nukes.

BZ